Arouet
Member
Tim asked a question in the Victor Stenger thread (http://www.skeptiko-forum.com/threads/victor-stenger.1232/) that got me thinking.
I think it does matter. Or rather: it should. I created a new thread in order to broaden this out from just the Stenger context to our online relationships generally.
The internet isn't a child any more. It has become integrated into our respective societies. Further, it has allowed the creation of new communities - not based on geography but communities of interest. The means of communication has shifted - but the community is real.
Typically, there has been a habit of many internet users to consider the internet to be "anonymous" and therefore many act terribly, saying things they would never say to another person face to face. I think it is naive to consider our online identities to not be "real" and for the consequences of our online actions to not be "real".
I think our online identifies are functionally every bit as real as offline identities. I'm not saying that they function exactly the same - clearly they don't. But as people I think our online identities are as much a part of us as our offline identities.
Sure there are parts of our offline lives that don't make it online, but don't forget that it is often the same in reverse! I don't have anything like the discussions I have here with the vast majority of people I know offline. I've divulged things on this forum that I would not divulge to many people I know in real life. The adoption of handles frees many of us up to pursue interests and relationships we might not otherwise feel comfortable pursuing offline. But that doesn't make it less real in terms of social interaction or relationship building - it's just a different form of it. Remember: the internet is simply the means of communication.
Many of the members of this forum have interacted with each other now for years. We've gotten to know each other. Sure, not everything about each other, but that doesn't happen offline either. Offline we have different types of relationships - we share different levels of information about ourselves with different people. Online relationships affect us similarly to offline ones. They can provide comfort and support. They can invoke interest and excitement, or provoke anger and cause hurt feelings. They can inspire or enrage, enthrall or bore.
Stop for a moment, folks, and just reflect on the nature of your online relationships and communities.
The internet has expanded our abilities to communicate with other human beings. It has made the world a much smaller place, and allowed for communities to develop that were previously impractical. It's time to recognise that these communities are just as much a part of us as our offline communities.
And that our words here do matter.
It doesn't matter what I say, what he said or what anyone said on an internet forum, does it ?
I think it does matter. Or rather: it should. I created a new thread in order to broaden this out from just the Stenger context to our online relationships generally.
The internet isn't a child any more. It has become integrated into our respective societies. Further, it has allowed the creation of new communities - not based on geography but communities of interest. The means of communication has shifted - but the community is real.
Typically, there has been a habit of many internet users to consider the internet to be "anonymous" and therefore many act terribly, saying things they would never say to another person face to face. I think it is naive to consider our online identities to not be "real" and for the consequences of our online actions to not be "real".
I think our online identifies are functionally every bit as real as offline identities. I'm not saying that they function exactly the same - clearly they don't. But as people I think our online identities are as much a part of us as our offline identities.
Sure there are parts of our offline lives that don't make it online, but don't forget that it is often the same in reverse! I don't have anything like the discussions I have here with the vast majority of people I know offline. I've divulged things on this forum that I would not divulge to many people I know in real life. The adoption of handles frees many of us up to pursue interests and relationships we might not otherwise feel comfortable pursuing offline. But that doesn't make it less real in terms of social interaction or relationship building - it's just a different form of it. Remember: the internet is simply the means of communication.
Many of the members of this forum have interacted with each other now for years. We've gotten to know each other. Sure, not everything about each other, but that doesn't happen offline either. Offline we have different types of relationships - we share different levels of information about ourselves with different people. Online relationships affect us similarly to offline ones. They can provide comfort and support. They can invoke interest and excitement, or provoke anger and cause hurt feelings. They can inspire or enrage, enthrall or bore.
Stop for a moment, folks, and just reflect on the nature of your online relationships and communities.
The internet has expanded our abilities to communicate with other human beings. It has made the world a much smaller place, and allowed for communities to develop that were previously impractical. It's time to recognise that these communities are just as much a part of us as our offline communities.
And that our words here do matter.